A friend of mine, who works for WHO in Pakistan, had the misfortune of being robbed. He told me the story and literally I had goose bumps and a hysterical laughter at the same time. According to him, he was on his way, along with one other colleague, a skinny doctor, to a far flung area to assess level of polio vaccination.

He said he was going in a Toyota Hilux and the driver was an old man sick with diabetes. At one point while they were passing through some woods, they were intercepted by dacoits. They suddenly jumped onto the roads armed with AK-47s and asked everyone in the car to come out. one of them sat in the car and immediately drove it way. The others took my friends and the other two people into the woods and tied their hands together with their arms around a tree. They were also blind folded.

My friend said that then one of them suggested that we be shot immediately. "Apparently he had pointed the gun at one of us while saying so. But the other one told them not to do so as they had already gotten the car and wasting bullets on them was pointless, it would be better to just do a body search instead. They took off our shoes first. Then they carried out a body search."

It was at this point that the funny thing happened. During the search a stupid, unexpected item was found on the skinny doctor: a condom. For some crazy reason, the man was carrying it in the front pocket of his qamees.

My friend went on, " The dacoit was furious and said, ' so you are carrying the sack (local term) when there is even no woman with you. You want it for what haan? Let me wear it and use it on all of you."

My friend said until that point, he had been really worried, worried for his life. But from this point on, the fear multiplied. Now, he was scared not only for his life, but his honor (a**) too." He said I started reciting ayatul kursi to avoid such a dreadful prospect of being tied up, blinded folded and raped. He said the he then thought that if he was approached with any raping intent, he would attempt to kick the assailant, and that would either lead to his being shot, or, after being subdued, raped with greater mercilessness.

Thank God, the man did not mean it and he did not do anything of that sort. :)